Xiaomi could announce the Mi Band 1S on July 22

Xiaomi may have just unveiled the 32GB variant of its Mi4i in India, but that doesn’t appear to be the only new device up its sleeve. The Chinese company has been teasing images (below) about the existence of the Mi Band 1S via social media, and the likelihood of it being announced tomorrow, July 22nd.

A July 22nd announcement would mark the anniversary that the original Mi Band was released last year. All we know for sure is that the above image says “Good Things Happen Tomorrow“, which is, you guessed it, July 22nd. This second-generation wearable is believed to include a heart-rate monitor among other improvements. As teasers go, it certainly isn’t the worst we’ve seen, especially since we only have a day or so to wait until all is revealed.

Source: Technodify
Via: UberGizmo

Come comment on this article: Xiaomi could announce the Mi Band 1S on July 22

Sky app to offer Premier League highlights from 2016-17 season

Although Sky spent a record £4.2 billion for Premier League TV rights for three seasons from 2016, the company wasn’t able to secure access to online and app highlights at the same time. For over half a decade, those rights have been owned by ESPN and News International (now News UK). However, that will all change from the 2016-17 season, when Sky finally gets its hands on near real-time video clips for all Premier League matches and adds to the 126 live games it already has plans to broadcast.

Interestingly, the company confirmed it has teamed up with News UK to show the clips, allowing Sun, Times and Sunday Times subscribers to access highlights online and via their apps for another three seasons. Over the past year, the Premier League has tried to crack down on the number of clips shared on social networks like Vine. Both The Sun and The Times ask customers to pay a subscription for in-app highlights, but Vine users can record footage of their TV screens and share them to Facebook and Twitter for free. The League developed GIF crawlers, Vine crawlers and worked with Twitter directly to protect rights holders, but footage remains widely available.

Sky hasn’t yet confirmed how customers will access its Premier League highlights, but does note that it aims to deliver “the best coverage across TV, mobile, online and social media.” That suggests the company will take a multi-platform approach with its clips, but we’ll find out exactly what it has planned nearer the start of the 2016 season.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD

Comments

Source: Sky

Latest Pluto image shows a second, shorter icy mountain range

We’re getting to know Pluto a lot better, thanks to the images released by the New Horizons mission. Take for example, this one captured during the probe’s historic flyby on July 14th, which shows a second mountain range that’s less lofty but just as icy as the first one we saw. It’s located somewhere along the southwestern part of the dwarf planet’s popular heart-shaped feature now known as the Tombaugh Regio and is estimated to be around as tall as the Appalachian Mountains at half a mile to a mile in height. That’s approximately 2,640 to 5,280 feet, a lot shorter than the first range’s estimated height of 11,000 feet.

The scientists believe this mountain range is a lot older than the first, due to its heavily cratered appearance and the clear presence of dark materials. While they aren’t 100 percent sure yet, they think the darker parts of Pluto could be ancient — around a billion years old! The photo above taken by the probe’s Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) has captured features as small as one kilometer, so you’re getting a very close view of what was one was the ninth planet.

Filed under: Science

Comments

Source: NASA

Starbucks joins forces with The New York Times to bring selected content to your phone

It isn’t all that long ago that Starbucks announced its partnership with Spotify, allowing baristas to influence the music playing in-store. Today, we have news that Starbucks will join forces with The New York Times to bring selected news and content to Starbuck’s official app from 2016.

A total of 15 news articles covering social, business and political issues will be delivered directly to the Starbucks mobile app. Purchasing digital and print subscriptions will earn customers Gold Stars, which can then be exchanged for free food and drink by the 10 million My Starbucks Rewards loyalty members. Starbucks has partnered up with The New York Times and Spotify, what company would you like to see them partner up with next?

Full Press Release:

 

SEATTLE, July 21, 2015 – Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ: SBUX) today announced an elevated digital news experience for the Starbucks® mobile app, the result of an expanded relationship with The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT) which publishes one of the most widely-read and authoritative news publications in the world.  As part of the agreement, The New York Times top news of the day as well as a selection of other articles addressing key social, political and economic issues will be available for free via the Starbucks® mobile app for the 10 million My Starbucks Rewards® loyalty members. These customers will also have the opportunity to earn “Stars” through paid digital and print subscriptions to The New York Times.  

“We see a future in which the Starbucks retail experience seamlessly extends to the mobile devices our millions of customers carry with them every day,” said Howard Schultz, chairman and ceo of Starbucks. “Our relationship with The New York Times is the perfect example of bringing this vision to life.  We have proudly sold millions of copies of the paper in Starbucks stores for more than a decade, and are excited to bring this experience to the next level by enabling Starbucks loyal customers to take the best of The New York Times with them wherever they go, whenever they want it.” 

Beginning in the first half of 2016, as part of this Starbucks digital news experience, the daily and weekend briefings from The New York Timeswill be delivered to My Starbucks Rewards® loyalty members through the Starbucks® mobile app as well as other relevant articles from The Times recommended by Starbucks.  Additional articles recommended by Starbucks will come from other media sources over time.  

Mark Thompson, president and CEO of The New York Times Company said, “We have enjoyed a long and fruitful association with Starbucks and we’re delighted that this agreement will further extend our digital relationship. This is another in a series of arrangements we have made recently in order to ensure that The Times continue to expand the reach of our journalism to new and interesting pools of readers. We’re particularly happy that Starbucks has also put in place an appealing incentive to turn these readers into subscribers.”

Free digital access to 15 articles per day on NYTimes.com is already available in many U.S.-based Starbucks stores through the Starbucks Digital Network. The New York Times newspaper is also widely distributed in Starbucks stores across the country.

“This expanded relationship with The New York Times allows us to directly engage our most loyal customers with the latest and most relevant news of the day,” added Kevin Johnson, president and coo of Starbucks.  “Through these types of relationships, we are well on our journey to provide our most loyal customers with the opportunity to earn Stars everywhere and redeem them for food and beverages in Starbucks stores.”

My Starbucks Rewards® loyalty members will be able to “Earn Stars Everywhere,” through both Starbucks and non-Starbucks purchases.  Starbucks recently announced a multi-year deal with Spotify, which first introduced this new opportunity for Starbucks loyalty program members to earn Stars through purchases made with other companies. As part of today’s announcement, My Starbucks Rewards customers will also earn Stars by purchasing paid digital and print subscriptions toThe New York Times. Customers will then have the ability to redeem those earned Stars for food and beverages at participating Starbucks® stores.

The agreement with The New York Times links more than 7,000 company-operated Starbucks stores in the U.S. with the 10 million My Starbucks Rewards® loyalty members in a new and highly relevant way. Furthering its plan to build one of the most robust digital ecosystems of any retailer in the world, Starbucks continues to find new ways and platforms to engage and stay connected with its customers.  Providing its most loyal customers with the most relevant news of the day from one of the most trusted news authorities, The New York Times, is one more way that Starbucks enriches its customer relationships with benefits that are meaningful and unique.

 

Come comment on this article: Starbucks joins forces with The New York Times to bring selected content to your phone

Xiaomi takes the wraps off a 32GB variant of the Mi 4i

As predicted, Xiaomi has today unveiled the 32GB variant of its flagship smartphone, the Mi 4i, in India. The handset will be available in a dark grey colorway and carry a reasonable price tag of INR 14,999 ($235).

The 32GB model isn’t set to face a standard release like its 16GB counterpart, though. Instead, it will be obtainable via flash sales, the first of which is scheduled to take place at PM local time on Tuesday, July 28.

As for the specifications, the Mi 4i features a 5-inch Full HD display, a Snapdragon 615 System-on-Chip (SoC) with an octa-core CPU, 2GB of RAM, an Adreno 405 GPU and a 3,120mAh non-removable battery.

If you like the sound of the Mi 4i and would like to find out how to pre-register for the flash sale that’s arranged to take place next Tuesday — hit the source link below.

Source: Xiaomi

Come comment on this article: Xiaomi takes the wraps off a 32GB variant of the Mi 4i